Chinese operators getting 10 new casino licenses

Cambodia has just approved 10 new casino licenses in this third quarter of the year. Most of the recipients of these licenses intend to focus on online gambling operations.

This Thursday the Khmer Times have reported that the government of Cambodia has just issued 10 new casino licenses which would bring the total number of licensed gaming venues for the country to 75.

Ros Phearun who is the deputy director general of the financial industry department at the Ministry of Economy and Finance has told the press that the gambling industry has increased the flow of foreign investment for their country. It seems that most of these newly licensed casinos are backed by Chinese investors.

Most of these new casinos are going to be built in Sihanoukville on the southwest coast of Cambodia. They have chosen this area because it is one of the country’s main tourist attractions. Most of the casinos that are already on Cambodian soil are clustered near the border crossings with Thailand and Vietnam.

Phearun claimed that most of these Chinese investors are mostly interesting in developing online gambling operations with these licenses. Local residents will not be permitted to gamble in Cambodian casinos. Phearun said that this is the main reason why the investors are aiming for the online market because they can’t rely on a steady stream of Thai and Vietnamese gamblers in that area.